Hong Kong police retake parliament from anti-government protesters

Hong Kong police retake parliament from anti-government protesters

HONG KONG: Hong Kong police fired tear gas early today (July 2) to regain control of the city’s parliament after thousands of protesters occupied and ransacked the assembly in an unprecedented display of defiance on the anniversary of the territory’s handover to China.

Protesters hung the city’s colonial-era flag in the debating chamber, scrawled messages such as ‘Hong Kong is not China’ and defaced the city’s emblematic seal with spray-paint. Photo: AFP

Hong Kong police retook parliament from protesters early Tuesday (July 2) after firing tear gas to disperse hundreds who ransacked the building in a day of unprecedented chaos and political violence. Photo: AFP

US President Donald Trump said the demonstrators were “looking for democracy”, adding that “unfortunately, some governments don’t want democracy” – tough words for Beijing.

The semi-autonomous financial hub has been rocked by three weeks of huge demonstrations sparked by an unpopular bill that would allow extraditions to the Chinese mainland.

But on Monday, that anger reached levels unseen for years.

Masked protesters – mostly young and many wearing yellow hard hats – broke into the legislature after hours of clashes with police.

They ransacked the building, daubing its walls with anti-government graffiti, in an unparalleled challenge to city authorities and Beijing.

Police had warned of an impending crackdown, and just after midnight, officers moved in from several directions, firing tear gas and wielding batons as they charged – and sending plumes of smoke drifting across the city.

At a press conference in the early hours Tuesday, Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam condemned the “extremely violent” storming of the legislature, which she described as “heartbreaking and shocking”.